Top opposition figures in Tanzania were detained by police on Monday, according to their party, as the government sought to stop a large-scale demonstration in the nation’s commercial center, Dar es Salaam.
The opposition Chadema party had promised to hold the demonstration in violation of an official prohibition because of claims that security personnel had kidnapped and killed several of its members.
According to Chadema, riot police were positioned in strategic locations throughout the city to disperse crowds, and the organization’s chairman Freeman Mbowe and his deputy Tundu Lissu were both taken into custody on Monday.
Chadema charges that the administration of President Samia Suluhu Hassan is bringing back the oppressive policies of her predecessor, John Magufuli.
After Magufuli’s unexpected death in March 2021, Hassan assumed leadership and seemed to indicate a more liberal stance by lifting limitations on opposition gatherings and the media.
However, Chadema charges that the security forces are responsible for the recent vanishing of multiple members and the death of its national secretariat’s Ali Mohamed Kibao, who was discovered dead earlier this month.
In August, police stopped the party’s youth day protest and detained numerous party officials, including Mbowe and Lissu.
By Newsmedia